In part 2 of 2 episodes on design and decolonization, we speak to Kerry Ann Lee. Produced by Kadambari Raghukumar. How do you create culturally respective design practices? How do you get past that 'imposter syndrome' when you feel the need to represent your cultural background through your aesthetic as a designer? These are questions that are constants when you come from other cultures and work in an increasingly plural and diverse design world. In this episode, Kadambari Raghukumar speaks to K...
Dec 18, 2022•15 min•Ep. 129
In Part 1 of 2 episodes on design, decoloniality and culturally safe practices, Kadambari Raghukumar speaks to Dr Diana Albarran Gonzalez on Mexican design and textiles that became trendy in recent years, thanks to Fridamania. The hyper-commercialization of Frida Kahlo's image has seen it being indiscriminately deployed in the form of those very controversial Barbies a few years ago, to socks, stationary, makeup, you name it - 'Fridamania' world over has been framed in this cult-like phenomenon....
Dec 11, 2022•14 min•Ep. 128
This International Day for Elimination of Violence against Women, Latin American feminists in Auckland spoke to Kadambari Raghukumar about the issues the community faces when it comes to violence against women, in the context of the violent killing of Juliana Bonilla Herrera in Christchurch earlier this year. In February this year, 37-year old Colombian, Juliana Bonilla Herrera was violently murdered by her neighbour, a convicted rapist being rehabilitated in the flat next door. In the days and ...
Dec 04, 2022•11 min•Ep. 127
Witnessing a powhiri for some of the Bay of Plenty's newest residents is a pretty special occasion. Justine Murray was part of it all, in this weeks Voices episode. A marae is a place that embodies Māori culture and for new migrants in Tauranga a special pōwhiri hosted just for them was a chance to experience just that. For the second year local iwi authority Te Rūnanga o Ngai Te Rangi and its leaders hosted the formal marae welcome ceremony and a lunchtime feast for around 300 migrants and thei...
Nov 27, 2022•12 min•Ep. 126
Exactly 20 years ago this month, Vivio Ramos decided to make a life in New Zealand bringing with him his infectious love for Cuban dance. He speaks to Kadambari Raghukumar in this episode on growing up in Cuba, studying dance, and making a life in New Zealand. https://players.brightcove.net/6093072280001/default_default/index.html?videoId=6315930632112 Exactly 20 years ago this month, Vivio decided to make a life in New Zealand bringing with him his infectious love for Cuban dance. In this episo...
Nov 20, 2022•12 min•Ep. 125
In this episode, UC Research Medal awardee Misko Cubrinovski talks to Kadambari Raghukumar about all things seismic, and a journey of studying quakes that began in former Yugoslavia. Growing up in Skopje, Misko Cubrinovski witnessed not just the immediate impact a quake had on his city but how the incident shaped the place even years on from the incident. In this Voices episode he talks to Kadambari Raghukumar about his geotechnical research as a civil engineer and how a journey that began in Ma...
Nov 13, 2022•16 min•Ep. 124
Almost 40 percent of New Zealand households experience food insecurity, while 19 percent of children live in households that experience food insecurity. in this episode, Kadambari visits EKTA in Wellington, a non-profit distributing food every Saturday morning, rain or shine. Almost 40 percent of New Zealand households experience food insecurity, while 19 percent of children live in households that experience food insecurity. On Voices today, how an award-winning Wellington non-profit feeds hund...
Nov 06, 2022•11 min•Ep. 123
What are Pacific values and how can they be incorporated into the classroom to help Pacific students thrive? iIn this Voices episide, Kadambari Raghukumar talks to the co-authors of a book that examines this. What are Pacific values and how can they be incorporated into the classroom to help Pacific students thrive? Three Victoria University academics explore this question in their book Pacific educators speak - Valuing our values. Listen to the full interview with Fuaepe Rimoni, Ali Glasgow, an...
Oct 30, 2022•11 min•Ep. 122
Caribbean-Kiwi playwright Estelle Chout's confronting and comedic new play Po' Boys and Oysters wrapped on a high last week. Kadambari Raghukumar speaks to the cast about what it means to be black creatives in Aotearoa New Zealand. Caribbean-Kiwi playwright Estelle Chout's confronting and comedic new play Po' Boys and Oysters wrapped on a high last week. Kadambari Raghukumar speaks to the cast about what it means to be black creatives in Aotearoa New Zealand. From left to right - Layla Pitt, Est...
Oct 16, 2022•13 min•Ep. 121
The WOW Awards are back this year in Wellington - so what's it been like for the host of international designers who finally got to attend and show their designs after a two-year wait in limbo? The World of Wearable Art Awards is back this year in Wellington. What's it been like for the host of international designers who finally got to attend and show their designs after a two-year wait in limbo? We meet Jayati Saraf, who won the overall winner of the International Design Award for her two crea...
Oct 09, 2022•8 min•Ep. 120
In this episode of Voices, Afghan rugby players Bilal Slaimankhel and Mohammed Safi speak to Kadambari Raghukumar on what the game has come to mean to them in recent years. What's it like representing Afghanistan in rugby, from here in New Zealand? This week on Voices Kadambari Raghukumar talks to two players from the Afghan rugby team who returned home with a silver at the Asian Rugby Sevens championship in Indonesia - and to a massive welcome at Auckland airport in August. For Bilal Slaimankhe...
Oct 02, 2022•13 min•Ep. 119
In this episode of Voices, in the run up to Mental Health Awareness week we talk to South Asian mental health advocate about the gaps and challenges they see in the community. Produced by Kadambari Raghukumar. As New Zealand marks Mental Health Awareness Week, we talk to South Asian health advocates about the gaps and challenges they see in the community. The stigma toward people with mental illnesses in New Zealand is a huge cause for concern. 98.7% of Asians believe the public holds negative s...
Sep 18, 2022•12 min•Ep. 118
Wellington poet Ya-Wen Ho tells Voices why a collection of lead typefaces are so precious to the New Zealand Chinese community. Wellington poet Ya-Wen Ho tells Voices why a collection of lead typefaces is so precious to the New Zealand Chinese community. https://players.brightcove.net/6093072280001/default_default/index.html?videoId=6312284680112 New Zealand's longest surviving Chinese type collection is made of over 300,000 metal typefaces, has about nine font variations and about three charact...
Sep 11, 2022•13 min•Ep. 117
The Pacific Food Lab is a organisation aiming to change the way we think about, create and consume food with the hopes of improving our health and the environment. Big goals. This week on Voices, we meet two of the passionate people behind this cause. Could the answer to many of the world's problems - be food? Tracy Berno, Professor of Food Studies at Auckland University of Technology (AUT) and New Calendonian chef Gaby Levionnois believes so. "We've got a lot of systems problems on the planet a...
Sep 04, 2022•11 min•Ep. 116
International education has been forever changed by the pandemic. Now that borders have fully reopened, we hear from two students about their experiences and find out what the future looks like for the sector. International education has been forever changed by the pandemic. Now that borders have fully reopened, we hear from two students about their experiences and find out what the future looks like for the sector. Listen to the story When Akira Myojo first arrived in Christchurch as an interna...
Aug 28, 2022•12 min•Ep. 115
Marine mammals suffer several direct impacts of coastal development, in particular the development of ports. America-born scientist Deanna Clement's research has been a deep-dive into the lives of whales and dolphins as they forage and migrate around New Zealand's waters. Produced by Kadambari Raghukumar. One of the main human-made noises that can permanently or temporarily injury marine mammal hearing is the sound of piling - when ports are being constructed and piles are being hammered into th...
Aug 21, 2022•13 min•Ep. 114
Yuanyuan Liang's fascination with young adult literature took her down a very niche path of study - following one very celebrated Kiwi writers fantastical stories. She speaks to Kadambari Raghukumar in this episode of Voices. Ten years since Margaret Mahy died in July 2012, her body of writing continues to inspire, and intrigue. Dr Yuanyuan Liang's niche is analysing the trauma aspect of characters in Mahy's stories. It was a long-held fascination with young adult literature brought Dr Liang fro...
Aug 14, 2022•11 min•Ep. 113
Two linguists delve into the mysteries of English grammar with their new book on more than just misplaced apostrophes - asking fundamental questions like what is good grammar or correct form anyway with evolving languages? What happens when a Romanian and British academic meet in New Zealand? They co-author a book about linguistics of course. Bucharest-born Dr Andreea Calude and Dr Laurie Bauer released their book The Mysteries of the English Grammar earlier this year, hoping to shed light on ri...
Aug 07, 2022•12 min•Ep. 112
Daren Kamali's hair over a period of 25 years has now been woven into a traditional Ulumate, to be preserved for many years to come.Voices talks to the artist about the revitalizing of this ancient tradition, thanks to spaces like the Auckland Museum. Cutting his dreads off marked the start of this project for Fiji-born Daren Kamali. Working with Joana Monolagi, heritage Fiji artist based in Auckand, Daren collected his hair over a period of 25 years, to eventually create an Ulu cavu, a traditio...
Jul 31, 2022•13 min•Ep. 111
A Canterbury refugee centre is starting up its own driving programme, taught in the native language of migrants. It's another step towards breaking down some of the barriers to getting a drivers licence. It comes as the Government has announced Budget funding of 86.5 million dollars to help 64,000 people get behind the wheel. Katy Gosset finds out how that funding could trickle down and meets some migrants whose driving journey has just begun. A Canterbury refugee centre is starting up its own d...
Jul 25, 2022•13 min•Ep. 110
After a two year hiatus recovering from an injury, Wellingtonian and former-refugee Ali Mashal is back to chasing his dream of professional boxing. Fighting for a future and his freedom, led 23-year-old former refugee Ali Mashal to boxing. He dreams of representing NZ one day in the feather or lightweight class. The past two years have been a long and hard hiatus for him after a serious injury to his hand in a fight in 2020. These days, he's slowly training his way back to full fitness. FOLLOW V...
Jul 17, 2022•10 min•Ep. 109
With rising sea temperatures affecting our fisheries and marine ecosystem, how does Cawthron Institute's Dr Norman Ragg see research helping understand shellfish coping mechanisms better? Scientist Dr Norman Ragg has spent the past 25 years working with abalone after a passion for paua brought him to New Zealand - but not before collecting both samples and experiences from South London to Colombia, Israel and the States. Norman arrived in New Zealand exactly 25 years ago on Matariki. In today's ...
Jul 10, 2022•11 min•Ep. 108
In this episode, writer and performer Jacob Rajan talks to Kadambari Raghukumar about his journey starting in 1997 with his debut, Krishnan's Dairy. "When I first put that mask on, I can almost sense the audience lean forward. There's a childlike wonder that is kind of released in them. They're given that permission to imagine." It's been a quarter century since Jacob Rajan first wore the masks of Gobi and Zina Krishnan, the characters in his play Krishnan's Dairy. The play is on its final run a...
Jul 03, 2022•13 min•Ep. 107
Helping shift the refugee and immigrant experience one conversation at a time, is Tanya Nock and her space - Cultural Conversations. In this last Voices episode of a month-long series on former refugees resettled across New Zealand, Kadambari visits Nelson. Each year Nelson receives about 8-12% of New Zealand yearly quota of refugees. In 2019 when Tanya Nock set out to create Cultural Conversations, an arts and community hub here, it was the stories that this former refugee community wanted to s...
Jun 26, 2022•14 min•Ep. 106
On World Refugee Day, Kadambari Raghukumar speaks to the first family of Kayan refugees to ever arrive in Nelson, back in 2008. How has life changed for the family over the years? 12 years ago in Nelson, Dr Kay Sneddon decided to help a group of former refugees from Myanmar feel more settled in Nelson. The family were the first Kayan people to be settled in Nelson back in 2008 after being given refugee status while in a camp in Northern Thailand - what was then the controversial "Long Neck villa...
Jun 19, 2022•14 min•Ep. 105
Sepak Takraw has helped some former refugees tap into a taste of home despite challenges to keep the sport going in Auckland. Produced by Kadambari Raghukumar Sepak Takraw isn't officially recognized as a sport in New Zealand, but that hasn't stopped Karen players in Auckland. The former refugees have been getting their skills up to a level where they now are off to the World championships in Thailand - coming up in July. FOLLOW Voices on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Radio Public and iHear...
Jun 12, 2022•11 min•Ep. 104
From Vancouver to Auckland: violinist Andrew Beer prepares to debut a major new work in his adopted home. FOLLOW Voices on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Radio Public and iHeart Radio or wherever you listen to your podcasts. Violinist Andrew Beer's day job is concertmaster for the Auckland Philharmonia (APO). As the musical leader of the orchestra, he sits just to the left of the conductor. But every now and then, Andrew gets up from his chair and moves more towards the centre of the stage, ...
May 29, 2022•13 min•Ep. 103
At 22, David Huang founded his first AR startup called Oasis AR, continuing the 20-year-old lineage of such startups from University of Canterbury's HIT Lab. He spoke to Kadambari Raghukumar in this Voices episode. FOLLOW Voices and LISTEN on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Radio Public and iHeart Radio or wherever you listen to your podcasts. Over the past few years, NZ has been steadily pushing innovation in the areas of virtual reality, gaming and human interface technologies. We've seen s...
May 22, 2022•12 min•Ep. 102
Two best friends who started a finance podcast at the start of the pandemic look back two years later. Simran Kaur and Sonya Guptham talk to Kadambari Raghukumar in this episode of Voices. When Simran Kaur and Sonya Gupthan set out to start their finance podcast Girls That Invest, they hadn't quite expected it would become such a hit two years later. The podcast today is one of the world's most popular finance podcasts on demystifying investment for women. In April they just hit their million mi...
May 15, 2022•14 min•Ep. 101
Growing up in Ireland with a fascination with stormwater, set Aisling O'Sullivan on a lifelong mission to keep waterways free from pollutants, even here in New Zealand. She speaks to Kadambari Raghukumar in this episode of Voices. When Aisling O'Sullivan was a child in Ireland, tracing the journey of stormwater run-off was a source of endless fascination. In this episode of Voices, she looks back at how her experiences led to her getting involved in ways to help keep NZ waterways clean as an eco...
May 08, 2022•12 min•Ep. 100
